Lab Puppy Problem

[MJE2083]

First time Lab owner looking for some training advice. I have a 16 week old female chocolate puppy. The issue that I'm having is that she a major biter. I know labs are mouthy but its really becoming a problem. During play she will often bite hard enough to break skin. It seems to be getting worse now that she is latching on and won't let go. We have tried several techniques I found on google searches such as: "yelping", going limp, replacing my arm with a toy, bitter spray(utterly useless) and even shaking a soda can full of rocks. Some of these techniques seem to work well for a day or two, but after that she just ignores it and continues to bite harder and more frequently. Please help!

 

[nrpate05]

have you tried a shock collar? When he bites or gets close, give him a shock and he will not forget it. You can adjust how strong it is and give them a warning too. Definitely something to look into. Good luck, I know it can be a big pain.

 

[maxx]

I wouldn't use an e collar for this. They are for re enforcing known commands. This dog doesn't know what you want

What has work for me is a stern no and grabbing the dogs mouth and making the dog bite its own lips. I would go as far as making the dog yulp. It only took a few times for my dogs.

 

[FAIR CHASE]

Many unwanted pup behaviors can sometimes be corrected by ignoring the action. Meaning the pup will get get bored as a result of not getting a response from said behavior. Wear some protection (leather gloves, an old coat, etc) and let pup do the normal biting and see how that goes after a few sessions. Make sure she has lots of good chew toys available until all adult teeth are in place. The shock collar is another option but be careful with this technique as you may be introduce another set of problems. Better yet, use a shock collar that also uses a pager (vibration) response.

Good luck.

No one ever said raising a pup is easy.

 

[300 short mag]

With my dog I took his snout and took my hand and squeezed hard while telling him no no no repeatbly it worked for me good luck John

 

[schmalts]

My trainer always frowned on any shock collar on any pup under 6 months. I think some would say that there should be no "play" if this is a problem. Do you mean like wrestling? What's your definition of play?

 

[MJE2083]

Play as in...she is chewing on a toy, playing tug, fetch, etc... She will drop the toy and go after my hands or arms instead. Generally if toys are taken away and we try to stop play, she will continue to be in "play mode" and will continue to bite arms, feet, pant legs.

 

[TheJason]

Don't even think about a shock collar for this, it's not even remotely appropriate.

You need to show your pup who is the alpha right now. You do that by showing dominance in dog terms. That's not shocking, letting your arm go limp, or yelling.

Next time she bites grab the scruff of her neck and shove your hand straight to the ground. If you do it right, all four will be in the air and she'll be on her back. While she's down, hold her mouth shut and give it a firm squeeze.

You're not being abusive, you are simply showing your pup that there ARE LIMITS. Look at what dogs do when another crosses the line. The reaction is swift and decisive. Yours should be no different.

 

[kansasdad]

Squirting water from a spray bottle helps us curb unwanted behavior in our Heinz 57 and pointers. (Your mileage my vary with a lab!)

 

[TexAg09]

I have followed the training philosophy from Wild Rose Kennels (http://uklabs.com/), and it has worked very well for my yellow lab. (She turns 9 in May.) They trained all the DU mascot dogs, and they have a lot of free info in the videos on their website and youtube. I highly recommend them. I learned a lot from their DVD, and I've heard good things about their new(ish) book. Good luck!

 

[NV_ARCH3R]

Ever watch dogs together, when they show their dominance they pin the other to the ground by the throat until the offender stops moving and shows submission by lifting a hind leg. Do the same, when the biting starts tell the pup no, if it doesn't stop pin him/her to the ground until they stop struggling. I don't mean choke the dog just use the neck/throat to pin them with. Same with playing, when play times over and you tell em "That's Good" if the pup don't stop pin them again. At times a aggressive pup may continue to struggle, I've even resorted to shaking him a bit and growling at them just like a dominate dog would. It may sound foolish but it's always worked for me.

 

[Gerald Martin]

I wouldn't use an e collar for this. They are for re enforcing known commands. This dog doesn't know what you want

What has work for me is a stern no and grabbing the dogs mouth and making the dog bite its own lips. I would go as far as making the dog yulp. It only took a few times for my dogs.

This worked for me in the past. Don't know if it's considered kosher or not, but a few time of the dog having its lips between my hand and it's teeth let it figure out that biting a person equaled pain.

 

[putm2sleep]

Nothing but labs here - my little lady is 1 and was probably the worst biter I've had. She is an alpha, tough and the most athletic.
Needs to stop biting tonight.
Grab the top of that snout and with index and thumb and roll that upper lip over and on those sharp teeth and tell her NO!
No jumping up! Knee to the chest
No biting! Grab snout and don't let go until she knows you mean business!

 

[MJE2083]

Thanks all. I failed to mention that I've tried grabbing her by the scruff of the neck, holding her on the ground, etc... like most of the other methods it worked for a day or two, but sometimes turned her very aggressive and almost uncontrollable. I'm going to try to lip/snout pressure and see if that helps. Thanks again!

 

[HighDesertSage]

Push in on her cheek so she bites her lip.

 

[Bokeh]

Second the words of JLS. Spot on. Do not use an e-collar. The e-collar is not a teaching tool. It is a reinforcement tool for appropriate training. Best used in the hands of a pro.

She's just a pup and it takes time, training and repetition for a dog to learn. Those sharp baby teeth will eventually fall out at about 16 weeks. Biting is very common. She's full of herself and fiesty. Sounds like my kind of dog. Don't get frustrated and over react. Patience and consistency is what produces well trained gun dogs that your friends will envy.

My son has his first lab and has experienced the same situation. The pup is now five months and he's coming out of the biting phase. His pup gets lots of exercise and attention. Looks like they are building a nice bond. Stick with it and you will be rewarded with a great dog.

 

[Fire_9]

No experience with labs but I have an 11 month old GWP that started to get mouthy as a puppy. Sounds kind of weird but the best remedy I found was to grab his ear and bite the end of it until he yelped. Not hard. Just enough to get a reaction out of him. He is a very loving and playful dog so that probably made my life a little easier. This is my first experience training a dog so take it for what it's worth but it might be worth a try

 

[TheJason]

Thanks all. I failed to mention that I've tried grabbing her by the scruff of the neck, holding her on the ground, etc... like most of the other methods it worked for a day or two, but sometimes turned her very aggressive and almost uncontrollable. I'm going to try to lip/snout pressure and see if that helps. Thanks again!

That's because she is trying to show that she is more dominant than you.

Whatever method you choose, you must be consistent.

 

[SixPoint]

I remember this phase well. My Lab is just over a year old now. Hang in there, she will grow out of this. What somewhat worked for me was to grab her snout, roll her lip over those little razor teeth while telling her NO, push her lip into her teeth until she yelps. This won't solve the problem completely but it will give her some perspective and in a few months you'll be done. When mine lost her baby teeth she pretty much quit the bitting phase. good luck.

 

[putm2sleep]

Snow day - this pup loves the snow.
Going to mention : Make eye contact too => she bites you snag her & your eyes should tell her to stop this behavior, and yes be consistent. Given.
Praise her when she stops right away too.
-
Also would recommend to get routines going for her too : feeding, running, working and playing times. She bites you - no food. she bites going to play - back in the kennel / grab the dummy and she bites - no work. ya follow!